Motor for street-cars



(No Model.)

T. ROBERTS. MOTOR POE STREET GARS.

No. 445,756. Patented Feb. 3, 1891.

ff-v @l :uns cc.. mom-umn., wAsmNomN n UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS ROBERTS, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

MOTOR FOR STREET-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 445,756, dated February3, 1891.

Application led February l5, 1890. Serial No. 340,564. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS ROBERTS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Motors for Street-Cars, the. and I dodeclare the following to bea full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon,which form a part ot' this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in that class of locomotives thatare noiseless and smokeless, so as to be better adapted for street trafcthan those now in use; and the object of my invention is to produce alocomotive, dummy, traction, or portable engine that is noiseless, asthe exhauststeam is entirely condensed, and can be used over and overagain for feeding the boiler with Water. It is smokeless, as only cokeis used as fuel instead of coal; also, to occupy a very small space forthe boiler, engines, condensers, and operatingmachinery, and, iinally,to greatly reduce the expenses of building and running the locomotive,thc., and with greater safety to pedestrians and animals than has beenthe case heretofore.

lVith these objects in View my invention consists in the construction ofcertain details and arrangement of parts, as will be more fullydescribed hereinafter, and specifically pointed out in the claims,reference heilig had to the accompanying drawings andthe let ters ofreference marked thereon.

Like letters indicate similar parts inthe different figures of thedrawings, in which- Figure l represents a longitudinal section .of astreet-locomotive having my improvements attached. Fig. 2 is a verticalcrosssection of Fig. l on line Qc.

i `In the accompanying drawings, A represents a suitable body or cab oi'a dummy or street locomotive or motor as used on ordinary tramways orstreet-railroads, and in said body my improvements are arranged in themanner hereinafter more specifically described. These improvementsconsist of a vertical. tubular boiler B, preferably placed near one endof the motor and having asnit able grate for burning coke, which, as iswell known, produces no perceptible smoke. Said boiler is covered with anon-conducting material or casing to prevent radiation of heat. At theopposite end of the motor are arranged the engines E, which arepreferably of the oscillating compound type. They are connected directlyto the cranks of one of the axles, which isin turn connected by theusual side rod F with the other axle. The cranks are placed at an angleof ninety degrees, and the high-pressure cylinder. is connected to onecrank and the low-pressure cylinder to the other crank. The steamgenerated in the boiler passes through the steam-pipe s (shown indot-ted lines in Figsl and 2) and through the hollow trunnions into thehigh-pressure cylinder c., and att-er exerting its pressure on itspiston it passes through the hollow intermediate trunnion connecting thetwo cylinders into the lowpressure cylinder b, and after cxpendingitsforce on the piston in said cylinder it passes to the condensers C bymeans of the exhaust-pipe u.. If desired, a part of the exhaust-steammay be led into the smoke-stack, forming a steam-j et to assist increating a draft by a branch pipe n. The trunnions are provided withsuitable openings and partitions or diaphragms to properly admit andexhaust the steam as required. The condensers C, preferably one on eachside, are formed of a rectangular casing provided with tubes c,extending fore .and aft through the casing for the passage ot air.Between said tubes e are arranged the diaphragms f, by which a zigzagcourse is imparted to the steam. Any uncondensed steam in the condenserpasses through the perforation g into the hollow roof G,which is made ofgalvanized iron or other suit-able material. A non-conducting coveringmay be placed over said roof to prevent radiation of any heat. The roofis provided with an oblong central opening 7L for the passage of air,and, if necessary, on each side with additional openings 'L' to obtain avery large cooling or condensing surface. At each end of the openingsare placed dampers or valves 7.: for regulating the amount of airpassing through said openings. .ln one or both ends oi the con- ICOdensers C doors may be arranged to gain aeeess to their interiors forrepairs, inspection, &c. The water ot condensation in the condenserspasses through the pipes e into the tanks D,placed under the tloor ofthe motor, and any eondense-water in the hollow root descends throughthe conduits m, placed in the corners ot the cab, and thence into saidtanks which form the feed-tanks. It desired, the tank may, however, bedivided, and one be placed at each end ot the eab instead of beingplaced in the middle. v

In some instances a horizontal boiler may be preferred instead of thevertical one, and in this ease the engines may be attached to the boilerby suitable brackets or secu red to the floor, as desired. In othercases it may be desirable to have the motive power-w'. e.,

the boiler and engin es-oontaincd in the same structure with the seatsfor the passengers instead of having a separate eab for containing thesame. In this ease the boiler and engines are placed in a small separatecoinpartment, divided by a partition, and arranged at one end ofthe car.The engines -may then also be attached bysuitable brackets to theboiler, if desired, so as to occupy less space. This arrangement can bereadily planned by any skilled engineer, and I have therefore notillustrated the same by the usual drawings. In ascending heavy gradesthe live steam from the boiler may be also admitted into thelow-pressure cylinder, it' desired, by which greater power can be exerted.

The eondensers may be made of anyT suitable material and ol any sizedesired to obtain the proper amount of cooling-surface, and they may beplaced wherever desired to obtain a free passage of air through them.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent,

l. In motors, the eondensers C, provided with tubes and diaphragms, asdescribed, and placed on each side ot' the cab, in combination with theengines, as specified.

2. In motors, the condensers C, provided with tubes and diaphragms, asdescribed, and placed on each side of the cab, in combination with thehollow root provided with an oblong' central opening h and openings z'and connected to a feed-tank, substantially as shown and set forth. Y

3. In motors, the hollow roof provided with an oblong central openinghaving dampers 7;., in combination with the condensers C, provided withtubes and diaphragms and connected to feed-tanks placed under the door,all

arranged as and for the purpose specified.

4. In motors, the hollow roof provided with central and side openingshaving dampers, and the eondensers C, arranged as shown, in combinationwith a feed-tank and a pair of oscillating compound engines, all as setforth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS ROBERTS. Witnesses:

. MURRAY HANsoN,

WILLIAM H.

